A driver assistance device having a camera for detecting the red phase of a set of traffic lights is known from DE 10 2010 052 964 A1. When such an object is detected, the vehicle is recuperatively slowed down depending on the detected traffic light sequences until the vehicle stops at a stop line in front of the traffic lights.
A prerequisite for the above is, however, that the traffic lights must be within the visual range of the camera all the time. This particularly applies to assistance functions that act from vehicle stoppage, such as the automatic starting of the drive motor of the vehicle when the traffic lights switch from red to green.